Seeing the pile of memorials, Xiaowu cried.
I really cried, silent tears rolled down my eyes.
What should he do if he can't understand? His father is inexplicably angry today. Will he be punished by having to read and write? He is most afraid of reading and writing. Seeing a book full of black words gives him a headache.
The princes of Nanqiao entered the Imperial Academy at the age of six, having previously received their initial education in the palaces of their respective mothers. Women who could enter the palace were all able to read and write.
The tyrant emperor threw five memorials to the eldest prince, the second prince, and the third prince, and threw one to each of the remaining half-grown princes.
"You three, read it yourselves and write your comments after you finish. You four, copy the memorial in your hands first! Once you are done, give it to me for inspection! I really owe you a lot. I am so busy and yet I still have to teach you!" The foolish emperor rolled his eyes at them in annoyance, and the depression in his heart was relieved a little.
Seven small desks had been prepared for the princes in the study, and they were fully equipped with pens, ink, paper and inkstone.
Whatever you fear will come true.
Xiaowu's tears flowed even faster. He had a headache, it hurt so much!
But the angry tyrant was so scary that no one dared to complain.
The eldest prince's handwriting was crooked, and he stuttered in his essays with many words he couldn't write, so he was severely scolded by the tyrant emperor.
The second prince's writing was much more neat, but it rambled on and on without making any useful contribution, and he was scolded by the tyrant emperor.
The third prince's handwriting was quite beautiful, and he was able to analyze something reliable, but it was still superficial and was ridiculed by the tyrant emperor.
The fourth prince was as playful as the fifth prince. He could write simple words, but he would just draw complicated ones as big ink dots. His hands were stained with a lot of ink. When he raised his hand to wipe his nose, two black mustaches appeared on his face.
Xiaowu was not much better off. He was a four-year-old boy who was spoiled by Concubine De. He could avoid reading and writing by crying and making a fuss.
He pursed his lips and copied randomly, only getting one or two words right out of ten, leaving a few black marks on his face.
The three-year-old Xiaoliu and the two-year-old Xiaoqi were even more amazing. Their scribbles were completely ghostly. There was ink everywhere on the desk and the backs of their hands. Their little faces looked like tabby cats.
The tyrant emperor was speechless towards the four of them, scolding them and rolling his eyes at them from time to time.
The tyrant emperor spent the whole afternoon venting his anger by scolding his son, and finally calmed down.
Dinner was not served until very late. One adult and seven children devoured all 36 courses of the imperial meal in no time.
Normally, the imperial meals, which were rewarded after just a few bites, would always be served to the Mingyue Palace. Today, Imperial Concubine Shu waited all day but saw nothing, and her anxiety grew even more intense.
Xiaowu thought he could go home after dinner and was very excited.
Little did they know that after the meal they would have to continue reviewing memorials, and the seven kids were scolded again.
I finally made it to bedtime, but the tyrant emperor wanted to turn over the cards again.
The seven princes looked at each other in confusion, not understanding what flipping the cards meant.
The tyrant snorted coldly: "How did you get here?"
The eldest prince no longer considered himself the boss. He turned to look at the second prince. The second prince looked at the third prince in confusion. The third prince didn't know either and glanced at the fourth prince.
Xiao Si was extremely nervous and didn't speak for a long time.
Xiao Wu wrinkled his face and asked tentatively, "Was it born by my mother?"
"You think you can give birth just by relying on your mother? There are so many people in the harem, why some of them gave birth and some did not?" The foolish emperor said sarcastically, looking at the seven little fools with contempt.
Xiaowu was stumped by the question and stammered for a long time without being able to explain the answer.
Zhang Fujin was sweating profusely with anxiety: "Your Majesty, the princes are still young. This kind of thing... should be left for future instruction?"
The foolish emperor rolled his eyes and said, "They haven't experienced the emperor's day yet. They can't give up just like that."
He looked at his seven sons solemnly: "Is it easy to be an emperor?"
The seven little ones shook their heads at the same time, and lined up in a row from smallest to largest, like nesting dolls.
"Going to court, reviewing memorials, handling state affairs, are these hard work?"
The seven of them nodded, like seven little chicks pecking at rice.
The tyrant emperor snorted coldly, his tone contemptuous: "Is this hard work? As the ruler of a country, you have the important task of continuing your lineage! Flipping the cards is to fulfill this important task, and the hardship is even worse than attending court in the morning. I don't have many concubines, but I have to serve two every time I flip the cards! After serving them, my body is exhausted. The late emperor was even worse off. He had to serve even more women every time he flipped the cards, and he had to get up again to attend court just after closing his eyes for a while at night. I guess this is also related to his exhaustion. Sigh!"
The seven princes turned pale when they heard this.
It turns out that being an emperor means being busy from morning till night and being exhausted at night?
My deceased grandfather actually... died of exhaustion like this?!
The tyrant emperor didn't think he was wrong at all, and he actually believed so.
He was completely absorbed in carpentry and was not lustful or sexually averse. If it were not for his duty, he would not have wanted to fill his harem at all.
Sexual intercourse involves a man's dignity. If the time is too short, he will be ridiculed. Therefore, he has to work hard every time he flips the card. The longer the better. After one trip, he is probably more tired than an old ox.
The foolish emperor was frightened when he thought about how hard he had to work to complete the task, and he didn't want to flip the card anymore.
He decided to stop there and waved his hand: "Hey, you guys are relieved. I still have to turn over the cards to serve two concubines. I will be busy for at least another hour before I can go to sleep. You don't want to see what happens next. Go back and find your mothers."
Zhang Fujin couldn't help but roll his eyes upwards.
One hour...
Late at night, he could see cows flying in the sky.
The seven princes left the Lingxiao Palace respectfully, and as soon as they went out, they ran back to their own palaces happily like birds out of a cage.
As Xiao Wu ran, he asked the Third Prince who was traveling with him, "Third brother, my mother said that someone has to be the emperor. You can be the emperor in the future. I promise not to compete with you!"
The Third Prince gave him a cold look and said, "Are you trying to tire me out so you can inherit my slingshot?"
He also has a slingshot made by the tyrant himself, which is better looking than Xiaowu's.
After Xiaowu gave the slingshot to Tianbao, he always coveted the third prince's slingshot and tried his best to borrow it to play with it every day.
The second prince, who was eager to return home, also ran up and asked: "Third brother, don't you want to be the emperor too?"
The Third Prince raised his eyebrows: "Really? Second brother is the legitimate son born to the Queen Mother, you must be the emperor."
The second prince was struck by lightning and stood still.
The eldest prince followed silently, without saying a word, fearing that if he spoke, his brothers would give him the throne as usual. After this incident, he would never dream of the throne again!
Over there, the instigator in Lingxiao Palace stretched lazily.
Zhang Fujin immediately brought a tray of signs and said with a smile, "The Empress said today that the other ladies have been complaining a lot lately, and the Emperor is about to turn around..."
The tyrant emperor pushed the tray away impatiently and said, "I find that you are becoming more and more tactless. I was just talking. When did I really want to turn over the card? Put on airs! I am going to Fengyi Palace and staying at the Queen's place today."
When I came back and couldn't hear Tianbao's babbling voice anymore, I suddenly felt that the Lingxiao Palace was empty and I was not used to it...
Fengyi Palace was bustling for half the night, and Tianbao had already fallen into a sound sleep.
This place is indeed more fun than Lingxiao Palace. Thinking of seeing so many concubines coming to pay their respects to the Queen tomorrow morning, she couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth in her sleep.
Only when there are many people around can she listen to gossip and think of ways to help her mother clear her grievances.
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